


Something Else

by twowritehands



Category: Mission: Impossible (Movies)
Genre: Asexual Relationship, Asexuality, First Dates, Fluff, M/M, Post-Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation (2015)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-19
Updated: 2020-10-19
Packaged: 2021-03-08 20:48:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,949
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27082915
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/twowritehands/pseuds/twowritehands
Summary: Benji and Ethan have various moments through various missions until one day, it's not just friendship between them but something else.
Relationships: Benji Dunn/Ethan Hunt
Comments: 9
Kudos: 39





	Something Else

_Pakistan_

The safe house had bullet holes in the wall, little rods of sunlight and dust criss crossing the room. Even in the shade it was hot. And Benji was finding there was somehow still sand in unmentionable places even after his sponge bath. 

Ethan rubbed his eyes and sighed over the schematics on the table between them. They were both tired. Both wounded--Ethan more so than Benji's epic paper cut.

A quiet little alarm sounded from Benji's watch. A soft meep meep meep. He silenced it and stretched his back with a groan before saying, "Happy birthday, mate." 

Ethan shook out of his tired stupor, cutting his eyes over and frowning, "Did you set yourself a reminder to say happy birthday to me?"

"Sure," Benji looked up from his work with a grin, and a bump of his shoulder. "Why not?"

Ethan huffed with a smile, shaking his head.

"What?" Benji asked with a laugh, turning his palms to the ceiling. "You're my buddy. Why wouldn't I want to make sure I don't forget your birthday?"

Ethan was smiling, still shaking his head, but he lifted a hand in a wave off gesture. "Ok, ok. Thanks, man."

Benji huffed at him, smiling now in incredulity more than humor. "You don't have to be weird about it. I just said happy birthday."

Ethan's mouth clicked open and his eyebrows went together. "I'm not being weird."

"Actually, you are. A bit," Benji smirked and leveled a glare at Ethan, "Hang on. You're not one of those anti birthday people are you?"

"That's not it, Benji." He shuffled through the pages of blue prints without a purpose. "It just caught me by surprise. That's all."

"Which part? That it's your birthday or that I reminded myself to give you well wishes?"

Ethan looked caught out. His eyes shifting this way and that, his mouth still open. "... Both?"

"Ok, whatever.' Benji laughed to coat his sudden insecurity. "Let's move on from this increasingly awkward situation."

Ethan blinked. "Well, don't get mad at me."

"I'm not mad." Benji sniffed primly, organizing the pages in front of him.

"Benji," he said, knowingly. Benji refused to look over at him. Maybe next time he wouldn't even wish him well on his big day. See how he liked that.

"Benji, I'm sorry."

"It's fine. Let's just--" Benji began and he hadn't even dragged his eyes up from the pages when Ethan shot up out of his chair and full body tackled Benji. His chair went backwards, Ethan landed on him, and they rolled as a new pattern of bullet holes spangled across the space where they had been.

Ethan had gotten them under the steel top desk just in time. Benji's elbows, head and neck hurt, and he was trapped under Ethan, but he wriggled and reached until he had a prepared detonator in hand.

Ethan's hand closed gently over his, staying him from flipping the cover of the button. His face was inches from Benji's, the way he was kneeling over him under the desk didn't give them a lot of room.

"Hold," he whispered, lifting a finger. "Listen."

Benji listened… he could hear boots and men shouting in Urdu and Ethan was right. The hit squad was not yet close enough for their booby trap to do maximum damage.

They only waited something like ten seconds but it felt a lot longer. Benji was on his back on the floor. Ethan was straddling his thighs, all his weight on one knee at Benji's hip and one elbow at Benji's shoulder. His hand still covered Benji's on the detonator. With his every inhale, Benji could feel the warmth of Ethan's breath in the air.

This close, he could see Ethan had tiny little beads of sweat on his brow. Flecks of brown in his green eyes. Benji was bowled over in more ways than the literal sense.

Those eyes snapped to Benji's. Held. There was an almost indescribable moment outside of time. Then the hand covering his lifted.

"Now," Ethan said. Benji pressed the button and together they rolled out from under the desk and scrambled through the window as the upstairs experienced a tremendous flash bang smoke bomb.

*

_Paris_

It was pouring rain as Benji found the address, crossed a busy street and slipped through a basement entrance. Rainwater spattered from his poncho to the dirty bare concrete as he accessed the hidden retina scanner. A powerful boom of thunder rolled over the city. With a swish, the wall opened. He stepped inside. Lights came on. The door closed behind him.

By the time Benji spotted him in the corner, Ethan was already putting down his gun. "Benji, that was fast."

"Well, when you love what you do," Benji chuckled. He pulled out his tablet and pulled up the interface for the tracking devices he just put on three different people.

"Wala," he said, presenting the screen to Ethan.

Ethan smiled. "Good work. Looks like they're on the way. Let's get ready for the meet. Got you a change of clothes over there."

Benji could sing his gratitude as he hurried to get out of his wet things. He stripped the poncho and the damp clothes from under it, kicking out of his shoes and unzipping the bag.

Inside was a pair of very blue tennis shoes with white laces, some grey tartan slacks, a button down shirt of a sort of salmon and crumpled white, a white bowtie and a maroon belt.

"Nice clothes," Benji complimented. Usually these go-bags had nondescript things off clearance racks. "Little colorful for clandestine spywork, though."

"This is Paris."

Benji tossed his head; he had to give him that.

Ethan continued, "I thought you'd appreciate something more...stylish."

Benji put the clothes on. They fit. And well. "Right... er... I do appreciate it but…" he tilted his head at his reflection. "By _stylish_ you mean _gay_ , don't you?'

Ethan laughed, turning away oh so casually. "What? No. Come on."

Benji laughed and pointed at Ethan's reflection over his shoulder. "You _totally_ do!"

"No, no, hey, no. I just meant the… you know. Hipster style. That millennial thing. You wear it well."

Benji, cackling, adjusted cuffs and checked seam lines. "I suppose in a sort of backhand way you mean to say I have a youthfulness about me--ack!" He smacked his lips with a disgusted scoff. He had picked up the bow tie. "Clip on?! Even I know that's lame, Ethan. Come on!"

Ethan was already closing the distance. He took the bowtie from his hand--their fingers brushed--and he held it up. He applied pressure to the knot and held up a phone screen. "One squeeze activates the scanner. Vibration means the phone has been hacked. Two squeezes will clone the sim card."

Benji grinned, taking the bowtie back. "Ok that's cool." He put it on and tried it out. He smacked his lips. "Could have still made it a real bowtie, though. I mean the knot would still hide it."

Ethan snickered, reached up and adjusted the bow under Benji's chin. "I'll keep that in mind."

Benji noticed Ethan's plump lower lip and then Ethan saw him looking at it. He raised an eyebrow, let the bow tie go and went back to his work. Benji blushed and turned back to the mirror. He tried to pretend he never saw, in the reflection over his shoulder, as Ethan looked back at him, eyes sweeping down his body approvingly.

*

_Berlin_

Benji screamed.

 _Dear Lord, remind me to never ever EVER get on a motorbike with Ethan Hunt ever again!_ Benji prayed as Ethan zipped straight through two lanes of intercepting traffic. Benji shrieked as cars locked it down and swerved all around him. Buildings were a blur. Ethan switched gears and went even faster. 

_You don't have a helmet,_ Benji's brain kept telling him, _You don't have a helmet_!

Benji held on around Ethan's ribs and cursed when he had to let go to aim and fire his gun at the car that pulled up beside them. His bullets hit the tires, causing a blow out, the car crashed and Ethan deftly guided the bike through a sudden stop in traffic. Within seconds, the scene of the crash was far behind them.

Ethan twisted to look behind them.

"Ahead! Ahead!" Benji shrieked. "Mad man! Watch the bloody road!"

He felt Ethan laugh, but only heard traces of it on the wind under the roar of the engine and the sounds of the street. "We lost 'em!"

"Then why aren't you slowing down?" Benji demanded a few octaves above his regular voice. He had noticed that they were, in fact, speeding up. "WATCH OUT!"

Ethan narrowly missed the front end of a bus, took a corner so damn fast their knees went to within a mere inch over the pavement. Benji squeezed tight but had the where-with-all to look all around to make sure they really had lost their tail.

"I think we're in the clear now," he called to Ethan.

The bike slowed way down, coming to an idle at a light. A hand was suddenly warm on Benji's forearm. Ethan leaned back into Bejni's arms, "Don't you trust me?"

Benji released his vice grip on Ethan's torso with a vague sense of embarrassment, "Trusting you not to kill me and trusting you not to maim me are two very different things."

A car horn drew their attention. Four or five bikers were cutting through traffic right for them. Benji swore, "Fuck! It's them! Go!"

Ethan revved the engine and like a bullet they were off again. Benji squeaked and squeezed Ethan.

Around two or three corners, Ethan suddenly slowed and turned down an alley. They climbed off the bike, pushed it behind a dumpster and hurried --Benji on jelly legs--down the alley and out on another street, this one busy with pedestrian traffic, and they merged with the crowd.

Ethan stripped his army green windbreaker, leaving it on a cafe chair and picking up a black cardigan from another table. Benji swiped a hat and then took the scarf that Ethan suddenly had to offer him. 

They walked briskly, heads down around a corner, then another. Ethan pulled a pair of glasses from a pocket of his new sweater, frowned and put them on. Testing the prescription, he deemed them ok and planted them on his face with a big smile.

Between the cardigan and the glasses, Benji was suddenly looking at Librarian Ethan. It was a little like peering into a sideways universe. Benji smiled, "Gut aussehend."

"Danka," Ethan said and his arm went around Benji's waist, drawing him to a sudden stop at a food truck and turning him toward the menu in one motion. Up ahead, men on foot rounded the corner and cut through the crowd.

Benji ducked his head, toward the menu print, arm going around Ethan's shoulders. "Oh schau, sie haben Gurken!"

"Ja," Ethan said, leaning into him as the arm around his waist tightened, "Lass uns eins teilen."

The ominous buzz of approaching motorcycle engines came and went and the men on foot were long gone.

Benji's heart was still racing.

"Ein gurke, bitter," Ethan said to the truck vendor. Benji opened his mouth to remind Ethan that they didn't actually have any money, but Ethan was already pulling a 5 note euro from the cardigan pocket and handing it to the vendor.

"Typical," Benji huffed. "The only thing my new clothes have are lice." He adjusted the hat and scarf neurotically, not able to tell if the itching was phantom or legitimate.

Laughing, Ethan took a paper tray that barely held the massive pickle in it and in German told the vendor to keep the change. He still had one arm around Benji. "If you get lice, I'll comb the eggs out myself."

"I'm holding you to that," Benji said, keeping his arm around Ethan, plucking up the pickle in two fingers and chomping off the end of it. The explosion of spices on his tongue made him do a double take and make actual nom sounds. Ethan swiped the pickle from him and bit into it. His eyes went wide and he nodded. "Sehr gut."

"Ah, ah ah! Das ist _meins_ ," Benji said, taking the pickle back. "Call it making it up to me for nearly getting me killed about _forty times in a row_." He took another bite and spoke around it, "By the way, thank you for saving my life."

Ethan squeezed him with a chuckle. "Any time, buddy.'

*

_Helsinki_

Benji ordered a drink as he took a seat at the bar. He moved tenderly, thanks to their last mission. _Next time, make Ethan fight the giant while you recover the stolen documents from the pretty little thief._

As he took his first sip of his beer, he wasn't surprised when suddenly Ethan was in the chair beside him, also ordering a drink. "How's your hand?"

"Broken, probably," Benji said. He had it wrapped for now. "Er--excuse me. Can I get some ice? Thanks."

"You did well," Ethan said, leaning on his elbow on the bar, grinning at Benji. "I knew you would."

"Piss off," Benji snorted and regretted it when he smiled because it reopened his busted lip. His ice arrived and he gratefully put it on his hand. "You didn't have a choice but to leave me to fight Tiny Tim and you know it. It's a miracle I survived."

"Not really," Ethan said. "I always know you'll get the job done."

"Thanks. Er. You too."

Ethan chuckled. Benji felt silly. He drank deeply just to have something to focus on.

Something dropped across his field of view, plopping softly onto the bar in front of him--it was an envelope--as Ethan said cheerily, "Happy Birthday, Benji!"

Benji put down his beer and gawped. "Wha--?"

Ethan laughed.

"You set yourself a reminder in Pakistan didn't you?"

Ethan was all Innocence, "Yeah, so? What's wrong with making sure I don't forget my buddy's birthday?"

"Absolutely nothing. Perfectly normal people do it." He plucked up his present and then frowned. "Hang on, what's with the gift? I didn't get you anything."

Ethan shrugged, "I like to mark important days with gifts. Sue me."

"Well, then hold onto your socks this next Martin Luther King Jr day, mister, because I will certainly respond in kind."

Ethan's smile was ear to ear. He tilted his head with some playful menace. "Open the gift, Benji."

He ripped into the paper and found--two opera tickets. Opening night. His favorite composer. He was speechless.

Ethan waited.

Benji huffed. "Thank you, mate. Really. I've been wanting to go."

"Take someone pretty," Ethan said, clapping him on the shoulder. He stood to go.

"Wait, why don't you come?"

"Hm?"

"Come with me, Ethan!" Benji laughed. "It's the least I can do!"

"No, I got them for you so you can enjoy yourself."

"And I will if you're there! Really, when do we ever get to hang out together off mission? We can have dinner or something. It'll be fun."

Ethan, smiling without showing any teeth which was creating dimples that Benji had never seen before, nodded. "Yeah, okay. Sounds fun."

Benji's heart fluttered. "Okay. Cool."

Ethan winked and then as a crowd of young men swarmed the bar, he disappeared.

*

_Prague_

The aria brought Benji to tears. They always did, the arias. Loved a good aria. And tonight the performer was phenomenal. Benji tried to keep the sniffling to a respectful, dignified minimum and tried to dash away tears before they dropped out of his beard.

A nudge. Benji looked over and Ethan was handing him a handkerchief, eyes dry and a hook in the side of his mouth. Benji took the pocket square with a sniff and dabbed his eyes. When he glanced back at Ethan, he was looking at the stage but he sensed Benji's attention and looked at him. Their eyes held. The music swelled. Benji smiled and horrifyingly, it was wobbly.

Ethan smiled back and took his hand and squeezed.

*

"Sorry if you were bored." Benji said as they exited the building.

"Not at all. I enjoyed you enjoying it. And I liked the romance in the story."

"That's my favorite part, too. It's so full of longing I teared up a bit."

Ethan's grin reminded Benji that he had seen that and given him a kerchief. The crosswalk signal changed. Ethan ushered Benji across the street with a hand on the small of his back and didn't drop it right away when they made it to the sidewalk. 

Benji caught the hand as it fell away and just like that, they were walking in Prague, holding hands after seeing an Opera. It made Benji sigh with the first honest swell of contentment probably in his life. "Thank you, Ethan. This is, with a doubt, the best birthday ever."

*

_Madrid_

Luther rattled off technical details about a satellite, a relay station and a cloaking device. Ethan assembled an armory of gadgets and weapons and Benji got the masks ready. 

Whenever he and Ethan passed one another, their clothes brushed or their eyes met, or both. Each time made Benji's heart skip a beat. Ethan always shot him a little smile. An unbelievably sweet little knowing smile.

More than once, Benji almost reached out to touch Ethan. He so wanted to. But they were on a mission. A very serious mission. Literally the fate of the world was in the balance. No time for kissing the tip of Ethan's nose just because.

After about the fifth secret look they shared, Benji's eye happened to fall to Luther. The man was looking. And Seeing.

"Mm hmm," he said.

*

Benji focused on his breathing and his aim. Luther went through the door first and Benji sprang after him. Luther fired one shot. Benji didn't have to fire any. The room was littered with crumpled men, the one Luther just shot adding himself to the pile.

Ethan, standing in the middle of the room, lowered his gun from having aimed it at movement in the door.

"Thanks, Luther," Ethan said. He was out of breath. He was bleeding from the face and collarbones, his shirt torn half off.

"We got it," Benji said, holstering his weapon and sagging against the wall. "It's already uploaded to IMF servers. It's done."

Ethan smiled. "Didn't I say I can always count on you?"

"It was damn close this time, Ethan," Luther said solemnly.

"Isn't it always?" Ethan chuckled. He walked right past Luther, straight to Benji. He gripped him by the back of the neck, making him look him in the eye. "Are you ok?"

Benji just knew if he looked into Ethan's eyes, he'd lose it, so he didn't. He nodded with his eyes on the ground.

"Hey," Ethan said softly.

Benji looked. It all welled up inside. He clamped down on it. Barely.

Ethan's eyes were kind, and they knew, and it was all alright.

"You two are together, aren't you?" Luther asked.

"Erm," Benji said at the same time Ethan--eyes never leaving Benji's-- said, "Yes," 

Benji rolled his eyes at himself and gushed out a quick, "Yes, ok, you caught us, Luther."

Ethan chuckled. Benji felt… good.

"Since when?" Luther demanded.

Ethan looked at Luther and frowned in thought, eyes sliding over to Benji.

"Well," Benji scratched his chin in thought. "There was that thing in Pakistan?" Benji answered.

"Yeah," Ethan cleared his throat, "And then in Berlin."

"Oh, don't forget Paris," Benji said.

"Oh, right." Ethan grinned. His fingers slid between Benji's.

Luther was chuckling, "Ok. I guess I'm not mad at this. You two got a nice little vibe going over there. It's good to see you happy again." The last part he said just to Ethan.

Ethan inclined his head to his old friend then smiled up at Benji.

*

_London_

Ethan curled up to Benji in bed wearing a t-shirt and flannel bottoms. Benji slept in briefs now to prevent overheating. They shared a goodnight kiss but didn't drop off instantly. Benji soaked in the feeling of having someone in his arms, ready to sleep safe and sound.

Ethan broke the silence, ever the agent who could sense the other person's thoughts. "What's on your mind?"

Benji hummed, collecting the idea into words. "Do you think Luther thinks we have sex now?"

Benji had been feeling awkward since the Outing. Luther's pointed looks seemed to be saying a lot that just wasn't true.

Ethan grunted with sleepy interest. "We told him we are together. Most people take that to mean a sexual relationship."

"Have you ever corrected that kind of assumption?"

Ethan shook his head and shifted closer. "Is this a lead up to you saying we should have sex?"

"What? No, darling, I'm just asking, have you ever explained yourself to a sexual person before?"

The tension released from Ethan's shoulders. "No. I'd just have sex when they initiated it. It's not like I can't. It's not terrible. If they want it and I care about them, it's fine. That's how it was with Julia. So…. Do you want to?"

Benji pulled a face, half a smile. "Not tonight. I don't get turned on just like that. Never have. Maybe if you take me to another opera and say a lot of very nice things and we burn a lot of candles or something. Really set the mood like that."

A soft chuckle. "I'll keep that in mind, but for tonight, I'm sorry, baby, but that's just too much work after a mission."

Benji laughed. "Agreed."

Ethan hummed, hand sweeping under the blankets just to feel skin. "You get it."

"I get it."

"That's… why I love you."

Benji's heart swelled and he squeezed Ethan tightly. His throat felt tight but he managed to whisper, "I love you, too."

Ethan lifted his head for another kiss. Benji held him there, speaking softly, feeling wobbly again, "Never said that to anyone before."

He actually felt Ethan's eyes widen by the shift of the eyelashes so close to his own. "Never?"

"Not countin' family… The big L word used to freak me out."

They kissed again and Ethan made himself comfortable on top of him. "And it doesn't anymore?"

Benji's heart was hammering. "You make it so easy, don't you? Loving you doesn't mean I have to compromise who I am, what I do for a living, who I can be. I feel like the best version of myself when I'm with you. Always have… So that's been love all along, hasn't it?"

Ethan gave three long kisses in a row before saying, "I feel the same way. Benji, when we went to that opera? I thought you'd make a move and we'd start having sex all the time, but you did something else. You just started showing affection without ever trying to cross that line. No one has ever done that with me before."

"That's what you did to me!" Benji argued. "I wasn't sure what to call us, if any of it was serious for you. Y'know, some people don't count cuddles and kisses and sleeping together just to sleep, but then you went and told Luther it's real. And," he sort of gasped for breath he was so thrilled. "I haven't stopped spinning since. I'm so happy."

"Me too."

"So we're not gonna have sex right now."

"No, we're going to sleep. New mission tomorrow."

"Copy that. Mmwah!" Benji gave him a real goodnight kiss and fell asleep squeezing him.


End file.
